Justin Stommes scored 19 points for the Colonels (5-5), who didn't score in the second half until the 10-minute mark. After taking a 22-13 lead, they were outscored 30-3 over a stretch of nearly 17 minutes.

Mbakwe and Minnesota's rugged interior defense had a lot to do with that. EKU was 0 for 10 in the second half until Stommes slammed down a dunk from the baseline to cut the lead to 43-27.

The Colonels have a couple of Minnesotans in their rotation, Stommes from Cold Spring and freshman Taylor Filipek from Willmar. The 6-foot-7 Stommes did his best to keep the Colonels competitive, leaping for tipped balls and unafraid to pull up and shoot or drive to the basket. Stommes, one of three senior starters for EKU, sank a 3-pointer with 6 seconds left in the first half that stopped a stretch of 6 minutes and 45 seconds without a score for the Colonels.

That shot also gave EKU the lead back, ending a 12-0 surge by Minnesota, but Maverick Ahanmisi made sure the Gophers maintained their momentum into the locker room by swishing a buzzer-beater just inside the half-court line.

The Colonels, who have already begun Ohio Valley Conference play, were facing a major-conference team for the first time this season. They also play at Georgia on New Year's Eve. This was also EKU's first game against a nationally ranked foe since playing No. 10 Duke on Nov. 25, 2007.

The actual number of people in the seats was at most 5,000, with the blowing snow and slippery roads naturally keeping thousands of ticket-holders away. The student section filled in all right, though, with the noise from their derisive "airball" chant at Filipek for a first-half miss reaching a near-normal level for a nonconference game.

The crowd also gave a hearty cheer for new football coach Jerry Kill, who was introduced during a first-half timeout and spent some time sitting in the seats with some of his players, including next season's quarterback MarQueis Gray.

Gophers senior point guard Al Nolen sat out with a foot injury for the fourth straight game, and coach Tubby Smith said he's unsure if Nolen will be ready in time for the Big Ten opener at Wisconsin on Dec. 28.

His absence has hurt Minnesota's perimeter defense, with a conference-worst 3-point shooting percentage allowed, but the upside is that Smith has been able to give his young players more court time.

Ahanmisi is one of four freshmen in the rotation, with Chip Armelin and Austin Hollins also providing depth in the backcourt. The bruising Maurice Walker is also getting time behind Mbakwe and Colton Iverson inside.

Mbakwe had a bunch of big slams, and Sampson had a couple of dunks himself. After the slow start, they were able to open up their offense and score without much resistence.